On the evening of October 30, the twenty-third year of Tianxing, the sun was setting and the sky was dark.

The yard at No. 17 Ping'an Lane is covered with yellow ginkgo leaves.

After Gu Xu finished his day's cultivation, he came to his kitchen and cooked himself an egg, a plate of green vegetables, and a bowl of white porridge.

Then sit down at the table, take the spoon, and savor it slowly.

That's the norm in his life.

Like this white porridge, it is light and tasteless.

At this moment, the little scholar on the screen suddenly came to Gu Xu's side, bowed to him and said, "Young Master, a guest is coming." ”

The little scholar said the word "guest", but did not specify his identity.

So Gu Xu knew that this visitor should be a stranger who had never visited in the future.

He put on his robe and opened the door, revealing a middle-aged man in a black robe with a long beard.

"Are you ......?"

"Under He Yiqun. I have heard of Gu Xiaoyou's name for a long time, and when I saw it today, he was really handsome and chic, and his bearing was extraordinary. The middle-aged man said with a smile.

Although the middle-aged man had an amiable attitude and no arrogance, Gu Xu did not dare to slack off in the slightest.

He immediately bowed: "I've seen Mr. He." ”

He knew that this Mr. He was a Sixth Realm cultivator, the junior disciple of the Great Qi National Master, the Fu Dao Master, and the guest of the Exorcism Division, and his status was extraordinary.

However, because he has always been dissolute and loves freedom, he does not have any official position in the Great Qi Imperial Court, but has been traveling all over the world alone, and even the Great Qi National Teacher sometimes finds it difficult to contact him.

I didn't expect He Yiqun to appear at his door today.

"I came to Yishui County today to be entrusted by the head of Luo Si to deliver the Seven Styles of Burning Sky to you," He Yiqun quickly explained his intention, "Of course, this is not the most important reason - because if I don't want to come here, even the head of Luo Si can't order me." ”

"Then Mr. Ho, you-"

"—I'm just a little curious about you, and I'd like to come and see you for myself." He Yiqun interrupted him and explained with a smile.

…………

Gu Xu invited He Yiqun into the room and asked the little scholar to pour a cup of hot tea for the other party.

Then, He Yiqun took out a thin booklet from his sleeve and handed it to Gu Xu.

At this time, Gu Xu saw that this top-grade spell "Seven Styles of Burning Heaven", which was described as superb, was only seven pages in total!

"This "Seven Styles of Burning the Sky", I have also learned the first two styles by luck under the teaching of my master before," He Yiqun raised the teacup, took a sip of tea, and said to Gu Xu, "You can see for yourself first." If there's something you don't understand, you can ask me.

"But I haven't learned the next few formulas myself, so you need to figure it out yourself."

Gu Xu nodded and expressed his gratitude.

He opened the book and began to read it carefully.

He Yiqun sat beside him and watched quietly.

The younger brother of the Great Qi National Teacher has always been a freewheeling person - his motivation for doing everything is to pursue inner pleasure and find all interesting people or things.

Whatever interests him, he will immediately and without hesitation start to act; And if he doesn't want to do something, no one can force him to do it.

His interest in Gu Xu mainly stems from the "Amazing Pen of Shock".

Because he knew that the slender and fragile brush was the most discerning master in the world, and it was also the magic weapon that the talismans most longed for - those who could be recognized by it must be extraordinary.

For example, the girl from the Lu family in Qingzhou more than ten years ago...... If Lu Huan hadn't committed treason back then, she would have become an extremely dazzling existence now - you know, He Yiqun once called himself a "wandering poet" and once admired Lu Shiyao's works.

In addition, Gu Xu also took the initiative to face the difficulties and chose to challenge "Seven Styles of Burning Sky"......

This made He Yiqun feel that there was another interesting person in the world.

He is looking forward to whether this interesting teenager will perform differently in the face of "Seven Styles of Burning Sky".

…………

Gu Xu stared intently at the first page of the book.

There are countless dots and lines on the pages, some deep and some shallow, some thick and some thin.

These dots and lines form intricate runes that are irregular and dizzying.

In all the rune-related books that Gu Xu had read before, he had never seen a similar rune.

"It's worthy of being the most difficult top-grade spell to learn in the Exorcism Division," Gu Xu silently sighed in his heart, "Even I can't understand its meaning at a glance." ”

He was not in a hurry to ask He Yiqun for advice.

Because he knew that the most valuable thing in a high-grade spell was its true meaning - the answers obtained from other people's mouths belonged to other people's understanding, and they were indirect after all.

Only by experiencing it yourself is the most effective way.

Perhaps, the process of interpreting the spell may be a way of enlightenment.

So he silently closed his eyes.

Moments later, in his mind's eye, the first page of "The Seven Styles of Burning the Sky" became an incomprehensible picture of dots and lines.

…………

A quarter of an hour later.

The sun had completely sunk behind the distant mountains, and the sky was a dull orange and a deep indigo blue.

The cold wind blew into the small courtyard and rolled up the dead branches and leaves on the ground.

Gu Xu finally opened his eyes slowly.

He Yiqun noticed that the young man's eyes seemed to become bright.

"Gu Xiaoyou, have you gained anything?" He asked curiously.

Gu Xu was polite and replied: "Mr. He, if my guess is correct, this "Seven Styles of Burning the Sky" is neither a spell nor a charm, but a diagram, a special formation diagram. ”

"Why do you make this judgment?" He Yiqun's eyes narrowed slightly.

What Gu Xu said was indeed the correct answer.

It's just that it only took Gu Xu a quarter of an hour to come to this conclusion, which surprised him.

Gu Xu smiled and explained, "Because I have seen most of the talismans in this world, and I have also understood most of the spells - but the way this Seven Styles of Burning the Sky is written is very different from them.

"However, the Seven Styles of Burning the Sky is not an ordinary formation.

"The lines on it are not the way the formation is drawn, but the path of change of the formation."

He Yiqun was silent.

He thought of many years ago, when he had locked himself in his room and meditated for seven days before he figured out this crucial point.

He Yiqun was accepted as an apprentice by Chiyangzi at the beginning, and his talent must be extraordinary.

But the erudition and understanding of the young man in front of him made him ashamed of himself.

"What kind of formation diagram do you think the first page of the Seven Styles of Burning the Sky is?" After a long while, He Yiqun slowly asked.

"Flying and dragging fire, gathering but no smoke. The light rain can't be extinguished, but the light wind blows and burns," Gu Xu replied, "When I tried to imagine the dots on the map as fireflies at night, and the lines on the map as the trajectory of their flight, such a picture quickly appeared in my mind.

"I think this should be the truth that Chiyangzi wants to tell us - the flame that burns the sky begins with the fireflies at the end of the micro."

He Yiqun took a deep breath and said, "Your understanding is indeed correct. The first page of this "Seven Styles of Burning the Sky" is essentially a map of the sword array, named 'Firefly'. When Teacher Chiyangzi used it back then, a thousand flying swords flew into the distance wrapped in flames, looking like fireflies on countless summer nights from a distance.

"It's just, Gu Xiaoyou, if I'm not mistaken, you don't seem to be a sword cultivator......"

Gu Xu chuckled lightly and replied, "Mr. He, weapons are the tools we have at hand, but they are not the shackles that bind us.

"In my opinion, the wind in spring, the rain in summer, the fallen leaves in autumn, the snowflakes in winter, everything in this world...... can become the so-called sword. ”

As soon as the words fell, he took out the "Amazing Pen" and waved it lightly.

The yellow ginkgo leaves on the ground flew into the air with a bright firelight.

Soaring into the sky like a star, brushing the trees like flowers.

The screen is suspicious, and the curtain is like a pearl in the night.

He Yiqun looked at the scene in front of him and muttered, "Weapons are not shackles that bind us...... Everything can be a sword...... He really understood the teacher's way......"

…………

Exegesis:

(1) "Flying around is the same as dragging fire, gathering but smokeless." The light rain does not extinguish, but the light wind blows but burns. - Tang Yanqian, "Song of Fireflies"

(2) "Soar into the sky like a starfall, and brush the trees like flowers." The screen is suspicious, and the curtain is like a pearl in the night. - Xiao Gang of the Northern and Southern Dynasties "Song of Fireflies"